Blind



G. T. DUFFIN Jan. 22, 1952 BLIND Filed Nov. 4, 1949 gl g ggggg gggtrllib NVENTOR, v Br'EEki T- DuH'ln,

ATTORNEY Patented Jan. 22, 1952 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE BLINDGreekie 'r. Duffin, Washington, D. c. Application November 4, 1949,Serial No. 125,519 (01. 160- 172) 2 Claims.

The object of the invention is to provide a blind for exteriorapplication on a building where it may function as a storm shutter inaddition to serving as a means of controlling the admission oflightthrough the equipped window; to provide, in such a blind, aninteriorly positioned operating means for adjusting the positions of theslats; to provide a room-contained means for elevating and lowering theslats; and generally to provide a blind of the kind indicated which isof simple form, composed of comparatively few parts and susceptible ofcheap manufacture and sale.

With this object in view, the invention consists in a construction andcombination of parts of which a preferred embodiment is illustrated inthe accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view of the invention, the window framebeing shown in section;

Figure 2 is a front elevational view of the structure of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a plan view of the elevating crank and its associated parts;

Figure 4 is a detail sectional view of the upper end of the structureshowing the rocker slat operating means;

Figure 5 is a detail plan view of one end of the rocker slat showing itsmounting means; and

Figure 6 is an elevational view showing the crank shaft arresting pawl.

Designed for exterior application on the building on which it is to beused, the invention comprises the support rails IE! (preferably metaland cross-sectionally square) with inturned terminal arms ll secured tothe sill and top rail of the window frame l2. The slats l3 are assembledon the rails before attachment of the latter, being formed with oblongholes l4 of suflicient width to allow them to slide up and down therails and being of sufiicient length to afford them rocking movement ontheir longitudinal axes. This, so that the slats may be elevated to thetops of the rails in a closely assembled pile to expose the equippedwindow, or lowered into shielding relation to the window in uniformlyspaced relation to be rocked to attain the degree of relative overlapnecessary for the desired exclusion or admission of exterior light.

The uniform spacing of the slats when lowered is secured by means ofchains l5 connected with the slats at their forward and rear edges. Thetopmost slat I3a and bottommost slat I 3b are thicker than their mates,the former being the rocker slat to which rocking movement for slatadjustment is imparted, and the latter being the 2 weight slat which,when the blind is lowered, tensions the chains so as to eifect uniformspacing of the full complement of slats.

The rocker slat has no up-and-down movement on the rails 10 but islimited to rocking movement which is made possible by the slat beinsupported on stub shafts 16 inserted through the ends of the slat andspanning the holes I4 wherein they are journaled in bearing holes in thesupport rails. At one end and at the forward and rear edges, the rockerslat 13a has connected to it the pull-cords ll which are trained overdirection pulleys l8 and direction pulleys i9 and are terminallyequipped with finger knobs 2D. A pull applied to either cord will rockthe slat [3a and with it the other slats, so that the desired slatadjustment may be effected by the selection of the proper pull-cord.

The means for elevating and lowering the blind consists preferably ofmetal ribbons 23 terminally connected to the bottom slat I32) andextending loosely through the holes M in the other slats and around thereels 25 mounted on a common shaft 26 rotatably mounted in a, clearancespace at the top of the window frame. The shaft 26 is terminallyprovided with a sprocket 21 over which is trained a chain 28 traversingdirection sprockets 24 and being also trained over the sprocket 29rotating on a shaft 30 in common with a mitre gear 3! whose mate 32 iscarried by a shaft 33 equipped with a crank 34 by which it may bemanually operated. The shaft 33 also carries a. ratchet disk 35 and itsteeth are engaged by the pawl 36 which allows forward movement of theshaft 33 but precludes retrograde movement thereof. J 1

In the elevated position of the blind, the collapsed pile of slats arehoused within the canopy 31 secured to the window frame at the top andspanning the latter transversely. This shield is as much for ornamentalas utilitarian purposes, since it shields the collapsed slat-s from viewand protects from the elements such openings as are necessary to carrythe operating mechanism from the exterior to the interior of theequipped building.

The invention having been described, what is claimed as new and usefulis:

1. A blind for exterior application to a building in shielding relationto a window therein, comprising spaced upright support rail spanning thewindow, a plurality of slate having clearance holes by which they areassembled on the rails, collapsible spacing means connecting adjacentslats, tapes passing through all the slats and connected to thelowermost, means for reeling the tapes to elevate the slats in a bundleto the top of the rails, pull cords, terminally connected, one to theforward edge and one to the rear edge of uppermost slat, and directionpulleys exterior to and interior to the window and having such pullcords trained over them.

2. A blind for application to the exterior of a building in shieldingrelation to a Window therein comprising spaced upright supportrailsspanning the window, a plurality of slats having clearance holes thereinby which they are assembled on the rails, means for elevating andlowering the slats on the rails, the uppermost slat having a rockingmounting on said rails, pull cords connected, one to the forward and oneto the rear edge of the uppermost slat, direction puliey'sover which thepull cords are trained to be accessible within the building, pull tapesconnected with the 4 lowermost of said slats and having a runningengagement with the remainder thereof, means for reeling and unreelingthe tapes, to elevate and lower the slats, and a canopy secured to thewindow frame at the top and spanning the latter transversely andshielding the uppermost of said slats and the operating means therefor.

GREEKIE T. DUFFIN.

v REFERENCES CITED 'I"-he following references are of record in the fileof this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 554.1151 Alford Dec. 25, 19001,801,911 D'uncanson Apr. 21, 1931 2,17%572 j Bowman Nov. 14, 1939

